Our 9600 square-foot, flexible use Grand Hall can accommodate more than 600 guests; the 3200 square-foot Community Hall accommodates over 125 people; and an expansive meadow with over three grassy acres surrounded by giant Doug firs offers a natural canvas for your next outdoor event.

Festival 25

Sep 7—Sep 30

Festival 25: Catch us while you can, Come celebrate a month-long, multi–media celebration of art and music by Vashon Islanders who have shaped the Island art scene for 25 years or more.

Presented by Open Space for Arts & Community, First Friday launches the festivities at 6 pm, Friday, September 7, at Open Space. More than 70 Island 2-D and 3-D artists exhibit their works, a piece from past and present. First Friday opening features live music from Island favorites, Portage Fill with room to dance, Kat Eggleston and more. Appetizers and libations available.

In addition to Open Space, community sponsors include VIVA, Vashon Events and 4 Culture.

Christine Beck, long-time arts advocate, potter and organizer says this event is a collaborative arts event she envisioned for years. “I decided to write a 4Culture grant to provide seed funding to make this happen,” she adds. The King County arts organization awarded Beck $1500 toward the project.

“Talented artists and passionate musicians who have contributed to our Island’s reputation as an ‘arts haven’ deserve to be honored and we invite our community to join the celebration.”

In addition to the exhibition, open 10 am to 4 pm, Friday, Saturday and Sundays during September (except September 15-16) check out free concerts Saturday and Sunday, September 29 and 30 and four artist salons (details below!) held at Open Space during September.

Festival 25 Artist Salons at Open Space

All Salons are free of charge!

Penny Grist and Larry Muir Salon

Wednesday, September 12, 7 pm

Reinvent yourself! There may come a time in the life of an artist when, by choice, chance or circumstance, you change your medium. Share stories and discuss strategies for navigating transitions from the comfort and confidence of the familiar to the excitement and anxiety of the unknown. It could be a smooth sideways step or a nerve-wracking leap of faith. Either way, change is challenging. Join us at the O Space. Grist has created art on the Island, from jewelry to mosaic for well over 25 years.

Peter Serko Salon

Monday, September 17, 7 pm

Change your point of view…change your art. Peter will discuss and demonstrate how changing point of view helped transform his work as a photographer. From photographer to actor, Peter has been involved on the Island arts scene from many different angles. His current passion, in addition to photography and caring for his granddaughter, is bringing focus through art to a multi-media project around World AIDS Day in December.

Don Cole and Joan Wortis Salon

Wednesday, September 19, 7 pm

We plan to talk about the intersections our lives and work, what turns us on and what moves us. Shared experiences, visual and cultural, impact us both and then are abstracted and processed differently.

Don and Joan have been working artists for most of their adult lives. Don, who began his career in New York’s Soho galleries, paints mostly large canvasses, abstract but based in different realities. His early work when he lived in Soho involved a good deal of dumpster diving from the large trove of fabric remnants discarded by neighboring factories. This predilection for fabric is one of the many commonalities he has with Joan who, when they met, was a hand weaver and textile designer. She has, with his encouragement, gone on to making works on paper. Their travels in Asia influence much of their work, now done in their large shared studio, which is what brought them to Vashon and where they work doing different but related work.

Valerie Willson Salon

Wednesday, September 26, 7 pm

I will first talk about my history as an artist and why I made changes in my career. I have made a living off my work since I graduated from The Pacific NW College of Art in 1973. One of the most lucrative and interesting parts of my career is participating in major art fairs all over the country. While it’s hard work, art fairs can offer financial reward for artists. Few people in the NW do the major art fair circuit because there are not many shows in the NW. As a painter, your only option is to drive. I will discuss all these elements of art shows—how competitive they are, how much it costs, how much you can make, how to find out about shows and the great comradery of people you meet. Join the discussion and bring your questions.

Sep 7—Sep 30

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